So Close
by The Night Life 13
Summary: How did Rukia end up dancing with Ichigo? in fact, how did she end up going to a dance with him anway? With some help from Ishida and Orihime, maybe the two will confess their love. Song: So Close by Jon Mclaughlin -Enchanted-


**Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or its characters :(… OR the song So Close by Jon McLaughlin… dude, he's SO GAADAAMN HAAWWT :).**

**Umm a little break from A Sports Tournament: Guys vs. Girls. I'm having some MAJOR issues and writers block with that :(. I watched the movie Enchanted during thanksgiving break… and twice haha it's such a cute movie, I definitely recommend it to anyone, it'll make you laugh. So this came up because of my lame fantasies for Ichigo and Rukia mixed with a little scene from Enchanted :). I guess this is going to be a songfic :) sweet…. Anyways, Enjoy.**

**p.s. when it gets to the lyrics and the actual song in this story (So Close by Jon Mclaughlin)… I think you should find this song and listen along to it, it'll put you into the mood :), and I'd have to say it's a good song!**

**So Close**

How did Kuchiki Rukia end up here? She was dancing with Kurosaki Ichigo. Yes, the obnoxious, hot headed, strawberry that she had saved on that faithful day from a hollow and which whom she had given her shinigami powers to. So how could she end up dancing with this jerk? In fact, how did she get caught up in going to this dance anyway? Let us take it back a few hours shall we?

**-A Few Hours Ago-**

A normal day at school. Nothing out of the ordinary, the bell rang telling everyone at Karakura High that it was now time to get ready for the week off that they had. Signs and fliers were posted all around the walls telling people to go to the dance that would commence that night. Promptly at 8 p.m. to midnight. Ichigo and his group were walking down the hall and busily telling each other of what plans they had in store.

"Oh we finally get a break!" Orihime exclaimed happily.

"I know right," replied Ichigo as he stuffed his hands into his jean pockets.

"So what time should I pick you up Inoue-san?" Ishida asked nervously.

"7:30 sounds good," the chirpy girl answered back to her date. Ishida Uryuu had gotten the balls to ask out Inoue Orihime to the dance a few days ago. It was quite cute actually. He had given her an anonymous letter saying to go the cafeteria, when she got there another clue was given which said "go find Tatsuki", when she found her best friend the next clue said to go to the front of the school, and so on and so forth. The wild goose chase that Orihime was sent on finally ended at the park. Where she found a very nervous Uryuu, clutching a beautiful red rose and holding up a big sign that said,

"Inoue, will you go to the dance with me?"

The orange-haired girl let out a giggle and ran up to the boy carrying the sign and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Happily she said yes. This was too much for Ishida and he fainted. Of course he wasn't alone there; Ichigo, Rukia, and Chad came out and helped him regain consciousness. The rest of that was history. Tonight was going to be a special night

"So Kurosaki," Ishida began, "are you going to the dance with anyone?"

"I… err- no I don't think so…" Ichigo responded thoughtfully.

"Aww Kurosaki-kun! You should go with Kuchiki-san!" Orihime interjected immediately.

"Eh?!" Rukia said out loud in shock.

"What makes you think that I'll go to this dance with HER?" the orange-headed teen said to them. Rukia was red with embarrassment and her breathing was getting shallow. She got this unexplainable feeling that crept up to her ever since a month ago whenever she was with Ichigo. It was weird. She tried to cover it up because she was scared of it. She had no idea what it was, this foreign feeling. Her heart would beat faster, in her mind, it was all jumbled up, and yet, somehow through all this she would keep her composure with the boy.

"No, I must not let anything out," Rukia thought to herself.

"Why wouldn't you want to go to the dance with her?" Ishida asked him.

"Yeah, Kuchiki-san is beautiful, smart, strong, and she's very admirable," Orihime added. The praise and admiration that Ishida and Orihime were giving Rukia didn't help her with her discomfort in her heart. Ichigo was getting annoyed and he finally gave in.

"Alright, alright! Will you guys stop hounding me?!" he yelled out. He turned to Rukia and sighed. His eyes locked with hers. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Rukia would tell he was having trouble.

"What Ichigo, are you retarded or something?" she couldn't help it, she had to taunt him, this was a priceless time that was rare.

"EH?! Shut up midget!" That famous scowl was visible on his face. "Rukia… will, err- will…. Willyougotothedancewithme?"

"Smooth move Kurosaki," Ishida said while pushing up his glasses. Rukia scoffed and smiled at the now blushing Kurosaki.

"Yes, I'll go to the dance with you Ichigo," relief washed over Ichigo as he let out a sigh.

"Ara! Kuchiki-san! What are we gonna do about your dress? Oh, I could help you with your make up! We've got to go now!" Orihime started and she dragged Rukia with her, there was no time to waste!

"Inoue-san!" Rukia said in objection but it was futile. The girls left Ichigo, Ishida and Chad standing there in the hall.

"Well Kurosaki, you better get a tux, and I'm guessing Kuchiki-san is staying with Inoue-san for a little bit, so make sure you're at the house by 7:30 so we're not waiting around for you," Ishida told him and walked off.

"This better not be a shitty night huh Chad," Ichigo said to his friend. Chad grunted in agreement and they both started walking out of the school grounds.

**-A Little Bit Later-**

Orihime had probably broken the record for getting in and out of the mall in less than an hour and finding Rukia a dress. It was beautiful, yet simple. It was a strapless white dress, with purple lining long the bottom and across the top, along with a small black jacket which the sleeves ended just above her elbows. The purple in the dress really brought out her eyes. Her shoes were also white, just regular heels. Orihime also found a cute butterfly clip which held up Rukia's hair in the back. If one word had to describe Rukia, it would be gorgeous, because she really was. Orihime applied a little bit of purple eye shadow and pink lipstick to Rukia's lips, and she was done. Rukia was a sight.

"Kuchiki-san!" Orihime exclaimed, "You look wonderful!" Rukia gave the girl a sincere smile and hugged her.

"Thank you so much Inoue!"

"Not a problem- AH! It's already 7! Ishida-kun and Kurosaki-kun will be here soon! I've got to get ready!" Orihime ran to her room and got dressed. Rukia laughed and sat down on the couch. 25 minutes later Orihime was all ready to go. She was wearing a light pink dress that hugged her womanly curves and would surely make every boy jealous of Ishida since she was his date. Her hair was up as well and her make up was a little heavier than Rukia's.

"Inoue, you really look amazing" Rukia told her. Orihime flashed her a smile. Just then the doorbell rang.

"That must be them! You ready Kuchiki- san?"

"Yep!" Orihime opened the door to two handsome men.

Ishida was the first to be seen. He had a dark, navy blue tux on with a white collared long sleeve under and a pink carnation in his breast pocket. A light blue tie was visible and his glasses were seemingly shining in the reflection of the lights. His outfit seemed to compliment his eyes very well.

"Good evening Inoue-san," he said to the girl. Next to Uryuu, Ichigo was standing there, looking at the ground, and fidgeting with his tie with his right hand and the left one stuffed in his pants pocket. He had on a black tux, also a white collared long sleeve underneath. His tie was red and in his pocket, a violet rose could be seen. He finally looked up and stared directly at Rukia.

"Wow Rukia, you look… pretty…" Ichigo said lamely. Rukia smirked in response.

"You don't look too bad yourself,"

"Kuchiki-san you do look remarkable, and Inoue-san you look stunning…" Ishida complimented.

"Thank you Ishida-kun, you appear very handsome," Orihime replied.

"We're going to be late if we don't stop talking, so let's get going…" Ichigo told them. Ishida took out his hand towards Orihime and she took it stepping out of her house. Ichigo rubbed the back of his neck contemplating whether or not he should do the same. Before anything else could happen, Rukia stepped out by herself and began walking along with Orihime and Ishida.

"Let's go Ichigo!" she called to him.

"Damn, this is going to be a long night, I can tell," Ichigo told himself.

The dance was really nothing special. A lot of students had shown up, the decorations were pretty nice and the music was alright. Ichigo didn't dare to get some punch; some stupid person probably spiked it already. He didn't want to deal with the consequences if he got drunk. Orihime and Ishida were already dancing leaving the awkward couple of Ichigo and Rukia sitting at the table, not knowing what to say to each other. That had really never happened before. They always had something to talk about, whether it was about hollows, Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, or even school. They were friends… right?

"So… umm... Rukia," Ichigo began hesitantly, "how was your day?"

"_How was your day? How stupid can you be? You were at school with her the ENTIRE day you retard!"_ his inner conscience told him.

Rukia grinned and suppressed a laugh.

"How was your day? That's all you can think of right now?" she asked him.

"Well, I… yes actually that's all I can freaking think of right now, ya got a problem with that?!" the teen retorted back converting back to his usual scowl on his face towards the end.

"No, not at all, it's just really amusing to see how fidgety you're getting," Rukia was having way too much fun with this; she was really getting the best out of Kurosaki Ichigo right now. Ichigo let out a grunt in response and folded his arms. Rukia turned away still smiling and saw the people dancing. Ishida and Orihime seemed to stick out, a nice song was playing and the teen with the glasses was doing a great job dancing with Orihime. At the corner of her eye, Rukia saw Keigo crying a river and staring at Orihime and Ishida as well.

"Sad, stupid perv," she told herself pitying Keigo.

"What are you talkin' about?" Ichigo asked the girl sitting next to him. She pointed to Keigo who was now about to run towards the dancing couple but Mizuiro was there to stop him by catching him by the ear.

"Freaking idiot…" Ichigo was about to say something when Orihime and Ishida came back from their dance.

"Whew, that was fun!" the orange-haired girl said as she sat down in the chair next to Rukia. Ishida handed a cup of water to his fatigued date and sat down as well.

"Thank you Ishida-kun,"

"Oi Kurosaki, why don't you and Kuchiki-san dance?" Ishida asked him. Ichigo was stuttering on what to say when Orihime cut in as well.

"Yeah! Aww you two should go! It's a lot of fun!"

"But I… don't dan-" Ichigo began. It was as if the DJ had heard their conversation, because right then he took the mike.

"O.k. boys and girls, it's time for that one song, come on to the dance floor and share this special one with your date,"

Rukia was now blushing again, and Ichigo was clearing his throat. He finally stood up and held out his hand to the petite girl sitting in front of him.

"Would you like to dance with me, Rukia?" he asked her, his eyes were holding the feelings that were inside of him now. Her violet eyes locked with his amber ones. She took his hand and the made their way to dance. It seemed that their height difference would be a problem for them, but actually it wasn't. Ichigo put an arm on Rukia's waist and the other clasping her hand. Rukia's other hand was on his shoulder, the heels Rukia had on really helped her. Ichigo gave a nervous gulp and Rukia could tell he was a little stiff, she gave him a small smile of reassurance as awkward as they both felt right now. Then, the lights dimmed and the music began.

_You're in my arms  
And all the world is calm  
The music playing on for only two  
So close together  
And when I'm with you  
So close to feeling alive_

It was as if it was a dream. The two never took their eyes off of each others.

"_Since when did Ichigo know how to dance_?" Rukia thought to herself as she twirled out from Ichigo, only to be reeled back into his arms. His chest was touching her back and the violet eyed girl sucked in a surprised gasp.

"_How did I end up here? I'm dancing with Kurosaki Ichigo, and… I'm actually enjoying it…_"

_A life goes by  
Romantic dreams will stop  
So I bid mine goodbye and never knew  
So close was waiting, waiting here with you  
And now forever I know  
All that I wanted to hold you  
So close_

"Ishida-kun! They're so cute!" Orihime told her date while they were sitting down watching the couple.

"Yes I believe so," Ishida replied back.

"Do you think, they're in love?"

"It could be too early to say, but lately, I've been noticing that they've been giving each other these strange looks,"

Orihime squealed in delight after he said this. She was so happy that she hugged Uryuu, catching the Quincy off guard. Ishida awkwardly readjusted his glasses and looked at the girl now embracing him, he lightly smiled and hugged her back.

"I do hope they realize it," she told him after letting him go.

"Well, even Kurosaki couldn't be that dense," Orihime giggled in response making Ishida's cheeks have a tinge of red to them.

_So close to reaching that famous happy end  
Almost believing this was not pretend  
And now you're beside me and look how far we've come  
So far we are so close_

Ichigo had no idea what he was doing, he supposed it was his instincts, and he was doing a pretty damn good job at it. He heard Rukia give a hitched breath and smirked, he had never seen her like this, and she was acting a bit strange to him. But all that didn't matter, she looked incredibly breath-taking and he was surprised nonetheless. Her eyes seemed to capture his every movement.

"_Her eyes are so beautiful… she is actually beautiful…"_

The teen swayed with his date to the sound and tempo of the music. As he listened to the lyrics, it reminded him of all the memories he had with Rukia. Their first meeting, her giving her shinigami powers to him; saving her from Soul Society, her return because of the Arrancar. They've actually been through a lot together, she was the one who changed his life. It was all because of Rukia. And Ichigo was thankful for that.

_How could I face the faceless days  
If I should lose you now?  
We're so close  
To reaching that famous happy end  
And almost believing this was not pretend  
Let's go on dreaming for we know we are  
So close  
So close  
And still so far_

Nobody else seemed to be around Ichigo and Rukia. They were in their own world. Dancing, as if it were their last. So much passion and emotion were in it. Could this couple be in love? It sure seemed so. Towards the end of the song Rukia laid her head on Ichigo's chest, not knowing whether or not it was the right thing to do. Ichigo felt his heart skip a beat. This had never happen to him before.

"Rukia…." He whispered to her. The girl lifted up her head to gaze at him. His eyes penetrating through hers. Without knowing what he was doing, slowly his lips were inching closer to hers. Rukia knew what was going to happen; the atmosphere in the air was the give away. Her mind was screaming no. But her body did other wise. Her heart took over her actions. Enclosing the gap between their lips, both of their eyes closed as well. Her lips were soft to Ichigo. His lips were so warm to Rukia. The kiss was light, only on the lips, nothing more. So much was said in this simple thing however. The first kiss of two people who truly love one another. Once ended, Rukia slowly looked up at Ichigo. Her eyes went with shock and she put a hand to her lips. Everything seemed to collapse onto her. The reality of everything. She stepped back from Ichigo, and told him three words before she fled.

"Ichigo, I'm sorry…"

The orange-head teen was glued to his spot in disbelief. One, he and Rukia just kissed, and two, she ran away from him. A realization dawned upon him as well.

"No Rukia, you aren't going to run away and protect me again," he told himself; he then ran out and followed the girl who had stolen his heart without him knowing.

Orihime and Ishida saw the whole thing from their table.

"Ishida-kun! Are they gonna be alright?!" Orihime asked worriedly to her date.

"Well, Kurosaki went after her right? So that must mean something…" Ishida answered back.

Out in the front of the school Rukia stopped, panting for breath. The cold night air engulfed her body. Puffs of white smoke came from her mouth as she stood leaning on the wall trying to re-catch her breath.

"Damnit! What the hell is wrong with me?! I couldn't have fallen for Ichigo, it's impossible, it won't be accepted…" Hot tears fell from the girl's eyes; Rukia touched her now wet cheeks. "Love is an unnecessary feeling…" she told herself. Flashbacks from when she ran away from Ichigo to protect him flooded back to her. She had run down the dark streets of Karakura rethinking all her actions that she did after meeting and giving her powers to Ichigo. She had made friends, laughed, smiled, she felt loved, but all that would pass after a while. When Byakuya and Renji came to take her back to Soul Society. Ichigo came to her and tried to protect her. She had told Ichigo as his body was on the cold wet road with rain pouring down on him, to stay in the real world, not to come for her or she would never forgive him. But, he came anyway, she should have known, that stupid, arrogant, Strawberry came after her. Rukia sucked in breath. She heard footsteps coming near her. She wanted to run away, but her body wouldn't move. And the one person who she didn't want to see at that moment showed up in front of her.

Ichigo.

"Rukia, what the hell?!" he asked her. She couldn't handle his intense stare; she looked down at the ground making her bangs cover her face. He grasped her shoulders and shook them a little.

"Look at me damnit!" Rukia brought her face up to match Ichigo's gaze, then more tears streamed down her face.

"No Ichigo! You know that we can't be together! That kiss was a mistake! I'm doing this for your own good!"

"There is no way in hell that you're going to try and protect me again alright?! You've already tried to do that once before, but you can't do it for me now!" His dark amber eyes pierced through Rukia's soul.

"You deserve better…"

"No, I don't, you're the one I've been in love with, I don't know how, why, where, or when, but I just do! You're not gonna freaking run away from me again!"

"Ichigo…" Rukia barely whispered she was looking down again.

"You know what? I don't freaking care about anybody else, what bullshit they would say, Rukia, I love you!" He let go of her, turned away and ran a hand through his hair. A puff of smoke escaped his lips as he sighed. Rukia's heart beat faster, he admitted it. Now will her pride allow her to admit her love for him as well?

"Ichigo," she began. The substitute shinigami didn't answer.

"Ichigo!" she said a little bit louder this time. Ichigo turned back around to face the midget.

"What?!" he yelled at her. Rukia crashed her lips upon his. Ichigo was caught by surprise, but he eased himself into it. He took hold of Rukia's hips and brought her body closer to his. Rukia wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing him closer to her. This kiss was much deeper than the first one. The passion, emotion, and true feelings of the two were engulfed in this kiss. The couple broke apart to gasp for air. Rukia laid her head upon Ichigo's chest.

"Rukia, I'll be here for you, we've been through so much, don't push me away…" he told her.

"Ichigo, I love you too," she replied in response to the man in front of her. Ichigo embraced her tightly and looked down on her. God, she was beautiful in his arms at that moment, the freezing night air didn't bother either of them. Ichigo moved Rukia so that she was pressed between him and the wall. Before she could protest, Ichigo pressed his lips to hers again to silence her. Another kiss enclosed between the two lovers. Their love will bring upon them many trials to test it, but nothing mattered at the moment to them. Only their feelings for one another, poured into the fiery kiss they were having. The night sky held many stars reflecting and twinkling brightly down to them. One thing was for sure for the couple. They both loved each other.

**GAAAHH, I was suppose to finish this over Thanksgiving break and now it's my Winter break so… yeah ahah… this took a while… and I didn't know how to end it, I wanted Rukia to be pressed up onto a wall though, hahahahah weird? Yes I know. Anyway, thanks for reading this, hope you liked it. The last chapter for, ****A Sports Tournament: Guys vs. Girls**** will hopefully be up during my 2 weeks off from school, but let's keep our fingers crossed! Uhh, yeah, I can't wait to see the 2****nd**** Bleach Movie! Review if you'd like, it's nice to get some once in a while. Umm, I think I'm done with this now. So, Happy Holidays everybody! Stay safe! And yada yada yada.**

**-The Bleach Guardian's Heart**


End file.
